The Jeep Grand Cherokee is a standard-bearer among sport-utilities, one of the first “carlike” SUVs people bought—not because they needed such things but because they just liked driving them. More than two decades later and now in its fourth generation, the Grand Cherokee remains true to its original blueprint, with unibody construction, seating for five, and a longitudinally mounted six-cylinder naturally aspirated engine (two V-8s and a turbo-diesel are optional) driving either the rear or all four wheels. It’s a capable off-roader in four-by-four form, but the Jeep remains an agreeable everyday companion, with useful space for people and cargo within a wieldy package—just don’t expect much in the way of fuel economy, even with the V-6 engine.

Ascending Mount Pricey

Our Grand Cherokee was in the highfalutin Summit trim level, which sits above the Laredo, Laredo E, 75th Anniversary Edition, Limited, Limited 75th Anniversary Edition, Overland, and High Altitude in the pecking order. Jeep has been probing for the upper limits of what buyers would pay for one of these SUVs ever since the dawn of the Grand Cherokee (and even before, with the Grand Wagoneer and fancy versions of the XJ Cherokee such as the gold-trimmed Limited). With our test example’s mid-$50,000 as-tested price, one would have to think that Jeep has found it—except that the high-performance SRT is far pricier, at $66,690.

3 x 4 x 4

Jeep takes off-road ability more seriously than any other brand operating in this space, and the Grand Cherokee offers no fewer than three four-wheel-drive systems. While Jeep does offer a two-wheel-drive version (all the way up to the Summit trim level), the vast majority of Grand Cherokees are sold as four-by-fours. In the base Laredo, the four-wheel-drive system is Quadra-Trac I, with a single-speed transfer case and a fixed, 50/50 front-to-rear torque split; Limited-and-higher models come with Quadra-Trac II, with a two-speed transfer case that adds a low range, hill-descent control, and Jeep’s Selec-Terrain dial. Similar to a system first seen on Land Rovers, Selec-Terrain can optimize the mechanicals for different surfaces, such as pavement, sand, snow, rocks, and mud. The third four-wheel-drive system, Quadra-Drive, comes only with the Hemi V-8 and adds an electronic limited-slip rear differential along with Selec-Speed, which functions as an ultra-low-speed off-road cruise control.

The 295-hp V-6 is the only engine on the base Laredo, but for the Limited, Overland, and Summit it’s one of three choices, the others being the 5.7-liter Hemi V-8 and the 3.0-liter EcoDiesel. (The SRT is a whole other animal, with a 475-hp 6.4-liter Hemi.) Any of these three engines is paired with an eight-speed automatic transmission, now with a traditional PRND gear-selection layout—having mercifully shed its weird electronic shifter, the operation of which was so anti-intuitive that it’s the subject of a recall.

A Hearty Thirst

Fuel economy has never been a Grand Cherokee bragging point, and that remains the case today, although Jeep made a series of minor changes for 2016 that bumped up its EPA ratings a bit. Among these are revised variable valve timing, lower-rolling-resistance tires, switching to lighter aluminum suspension components, and adding auto stop-start. We expect most owners will switch off auto stop-start, since it’s not a particularly smooth or quick-acting system. The changes nudged the V-8’s EPA highway fuel-economy rating up by 2 mpg, to 22; the V-6 improved by 1 mpg in both city and highway counts, to 18/25. The diesel ratings are unchanged at 21/28 mpg. (All figures are with four-wheel drive.)

We averaged only 18 mpg with our V-6 4x4, however, which is indicative of how hard the Pentastar has to work to move nearly 5000 pounds of Grand Cherokee. When cruising in the ultra-tall eighth gear, a gentle prod of the accelerator, whether to slightly increase the pace or just to maintain speed on a gentle upgrade, brings almost no response at all until the transmission drops down a gear or two. The V-6, which adds 5 ponies this year for a total of 295 horsepower, feels plenty adequate moving off from a stop, but in two-lane passing one misses the extra oomph of the Hemi, which musters an additional 65 horsepower and a whopping 130 lb-ft of extra torque (the V-6 produces 260 lb-ft). We timed the V-6 at 7.1 seconds from zero to 60 mph, against 6.5 in our last test of the V-8; the gap was the same 0.6 second in accelerating from 50 to 70 mph, with the Pentastar needing 5.3 seconds versus 4.7 for the Hemi.

Jeep’s Quadra-Lift is not an adaptive air suspension but is height-adjustable—it automatically lowers by 1.6 inches when the vehicle is parked and can increase ground clearance from 8.2 to a maximum of 10.4 inches. It’s a bit of a climb to get into the Grand Cherokee—or to hoist luggage into the cargo hold—so the idea of a suspension that lowers the vehicle when shifted into park is a good one; the increased ground clearance is meaningful only for those who are really going to challenge their $50K Jeep off-road (and, no, curb-hopping doesn’t count).

In street driving, the ride provided by the air suspension can be busy at times with a front-to-rear rocking motion, although buyers coming out of earlier-generation Grand Cherokees likely will find it plush. Handling is secure with minimal body lean, and the electrically assisted power steering is comfortably weighted and fairly precise. That said, the tall and heavy Grand Cherokee is no track star, where it held on for only 0.76 g on the skidpad and required 181 feet to stop from 70 mph. Buyers set on a Grand Cherokee who are seeking truly sporting on-road behavior had better budget extra for the SRT.

Two-Tone Two Rows

The current-generation Grand Cherokee, which first appeared for 2011, finally gave the model an interior design and materials in keeping with its sometimes high-minded self-image. And as you’d expect, the Summit is the ultimate realization of the theme, with a leather-covered dashboard, a partially wood-rimmed steering wheel, and on our test example, a rich-looking Dark Sienna Brown/Black two-tone interior treatment (our vehicle’s only option, at $495). All trim levels, however, enjoy a control layout that’s intuitive and gimmick-free. Chrysler’s UConnect 8.4-inch touchscreen (for which Laredo buyers pay extra) is one of the easier-to-use and quicker-responding systems, with large touch points and logical menus. We also appreciate the knobs for tuning, volume, and HVAC fan speed—although controls for the heated/cooled seats and heated steering wheel also should be accessible outside the touchscreen.

The Grand Cherokee remains exclusively a two-row offering (a three-row Jeep, which would revive the Wagoneer nameplate, is said to be in the works). Rear-seat space and access are notably better than in previous models, however, and the Summit and Overland come standard with an extra-large sunroof over both the front and rear seats. It’s a pretty swell interior, and we might feel bad mucking it up with sand or mud.

That’s right, we never took this Summit off the pavement—just like most owners. (We’ve spent enough time with Grand Cherokees slogging through mud and climbing over rocks to know its abilities.) In a sea of car-based crossovers, the Jeep’s off-road acumen sets the Grand Cherokee apart, and yet the compromises it demands are few. It’s a pretty nice vehicle to spend time with—that’s true even if you don’t really need one, which has always been a key to this Jeep’s success. This V-6 engine has enough power to do the job, but buyers tempted by such a capable vehicle could be easily tempted to opt for more engine, too.

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